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Night Owl 9
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Night Owl CD-ROM (NOPV9) (Night Owl Publisher) (1993).ISO
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032a
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pentium1.zip
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MATH7.TXT
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1993-03-22
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131 lines
INTEL ANNOUNCES PRODUCTION SHIPMENT OF FIFTH-GENERATION,
COMPATIBLE, PENTIUM(TM) PROCESSOR
SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 22, 1993 -- Intel Corporation today announced that
it has begun shipping the production version of the PentiumTM processor.
Up to five times as powerful as the 33-MHz Intel486TM DX CPU, the fifth-
generation Intel-compatible Pentium processor extends the Intel processor
performance continuum while maintaining full compatibility with existing
software.
The Pentium processor employs the most advanced technology and
engineering innovation and is the enabling technology for today's high-end
and tomorrow's emerging applications. Advanced operating systems with new
graphical user interfaces (GUIs), such as Windows*, OS/2*, Windows NT*,
NeXTSTEP* 486, UNIX* and Solaris* will benefit from the increased processing
power. The new processor will also benefit areas such as scientific modeling,
computer-aided design and engineering (CAD/CAE), large-scale financial
analysis and high-throughput client/server applications. The Pentium
processor also will provide the increased performance necessary for a host
of new applications such as voice recognition, imaging and real-time video.
Next Generation of Power
"The Pentium processor represents a new generation of power for the
Intel architecture. We are beginning shipment of the first member of the
family and more will be forthcoming. The Pentium processor will enable the
best price/performance systems in the marketplace over any other
architecture," said Albert Yu, senior vice president and a general manager of
the Microprocessor Products Group.
The Pentium processor is offered in 66- and 60-MHz versions. The
66-MHz Pentium processor operates at 112 V1.1 Dhrystone MIPS and has a
SPECint92 rating of 64.5, a SPECfp92 rating of 56.9 and an iCOMP(TM) index
rating of 567. The performance difference between the 66- and 60-MHz
versions is about ten percent.
"We expect that initial customers for Pentium processor-based systems
will be those traditional early adopters who require increased performance to
meet their needs. Additionally, these systems will surface in high-
performance servers for corporate downsizing applications," said Paul
Otellini, senior vice president and a general manager of Intel's
Microprocessor Products Group. "As volume ramps over the next year, Pentium
processor-based systems will gravitate toward more traditional desktop
applications. Meanwhile, the Intel486 CPU-based systems continue to be the
choice for today's mainstream application requirements."
New Technologies
Manufactured using a 0.8 micron BiCMOS process and designed using a
superscalar RISC architecture, the Pentium processor has two five-stage
execution units and can process up to two instructions in a single clock
cycle. Both the Intel486 CPU and Intel386TM CPU have one execution unit.
The Intel386 CPU is a traditional CISC design that utilizes several clocks
per instruction. The Intel486 CPU, designed with a RISC integer core,
executes most instructions in a single clock cycle.
The Pentium processor features two 8K on-chip caches, dramatically
improved floating point performance and a 64-bit burst-mode external bus. It
has 3.1 million transistors, nearly three times as many as the Intel486 CPU.
The powerful, fully compatible floating point unit (FPU) incorporates
optimized algorithms and dedicated multiply, divide and add hardware with an
eight-stage pipeline to execute one floating point operation per clock cycle.
The FPU is capable of running many applications five to ten times faster than
the same applications running on a 33-MHz Intel486 DX CPU.
Other advanced design techniques, like branch prediction, large
256-bit internal data buses and write-back caches, all serve to improve
application software performance. The Pentium processor offers this new level
of performance while maintaining full compatibility with previous generations
of the Intel architecture.
Intel and the Industry
Throughout the development of the Pentium processor, Intel has been
working with hardware and software companies to help them deliver a complete
suite of system building blocks, including chip sets, BIOS, cache and clock
drivers. Intel has also been working with compiler, tools, operating system
and applications developers to ensure software solutions that take full
advantage of the Pentium processor architecture and enhance software
performance on Intel486 CPUs as well.
Not only will current software run on Pentium processors without
modification and with substantial performance improvement, but new high-
performance tools and compilers are available that will allow commercial and
in-house developers to achieve even greater performance enhancements through
a recompilation process, also known as optimization. Many major software
developers have committed to optimizing their current applications for the
Intel architecture, while others are porting their high-end applications to
the Intel architecture for the first time.
Supporting Peripherals
Intel is providing system building blocks to enable a variety of
Pentium processor-based systems designed for high-performance desktop and
server applications. Those building blocks include the 82496 Advanced Cache
Controller and 82491 cache, the 82489 DX interrupt controller, and the 82430
PCIset chip set.
The Pentium processor and second-level cache chip set, the 82496
cache controller and multiple 82491 custom SRAMs, are a tightly combined group
of components optimized for high-performance desktop systems and two- to
eight-processor high-performance servers. The 82489 DX, the first
implementation of the advanced programmable interrupt controller (APIC)
architecture, provides multiprocessor system support. The Intel 82430 PCIset
provides PCI local bus performance to Pentium processor-based desktop systems.
It includes an integrated cache/DRAM controller, a local bus accelerator and
system logic with an EISA or ISA expansion bus bridge to enable a range of
price/performance systems.
Upgradability
Many Intel486 DX2 CPU-based systems will be upgradable with Pentium
processor technology through a new product in the Intel OverDrive Processor
family. This OverDrive Processor, based on Pentium processor technology,
will be available in 1994. Pentium processor-based systems, expected to start
shipping in the second and third quarter of this year, will be easy to upgrade
with future Intel processor technology.
Availability
Initial production versions are shipping now. Intel has begun the
production ramp and will ship approximately 10,000 units in the second quarter
of 1993.
For additional information, contact a local Intel sales office, or
the Literature Center at 800-548-4725 (in the U.S. and Canada), or write for:
Intel Literature Packet #JP-53, P.O. Box 7620, Mt. Prospect, IL 60056-7641.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is an international
manufacturer of microcomputer components, modules and systems.
-- 30 --
Pentium, Intel486, Intel386, OverDrive and iCOMP are trademarks of Intel
Corporation. Windows and Windows NT are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
OS/2 is a trademark of IBM Corporation. UNIX is a trademark of UNIX Systems
Laboratories. NeXTSTEP 486 is a trademark of NeXT Computer, Incorporated.
Solaris is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc.